Christmas
by zst4ever
Summary: It's the Christmas holidays, and the Host Club has gone to Kyouya's cabin! Tamaki has finally become a little less of an idiot, but still doesn't know what to do. Haruhi is completely clueless or so she appears and everyone else is laughing along...
1. Mistletoe?

"HARU-CHAN!" exclaimed Hunny happily from Mori's shoulders. "Aren't you happy that Kyou-chan is letting us use his daddy's cabin for Christmas?" Haruhi bit into a Christmas cookie perfectly seasoned by Kyouya's personal chefs and had to nod.

"I must say, it certainly beats staying at home and watching TV like I did last holiday season…my father works over the holidays, so I'm usually by myself…" Haruhi looked around at the cheery stone fireplace, the table laden with delectable food, the enamored and personalized stockings hung by the enormous chimney, and the festively decorated immense tree and had to admit the "cabin" (though it really was a mansion) was fantastic. "It seems a little overdone, though, since there's only us here, and the servants and chefs of course…"

Tamaki, who had been restrained by the twins from jumping up in tears when Haruhi mentioned she's usually alone over the holidays, could be restrained no longer. He flew to Haruhi's side, offering her a rose that seemed to come out of nowhere.

"Since this is your first Christmas with us, Daddy wanted only the best for you my precious Haruhi! Daddy hopes you enjoy Mommy's cabin and everything in it very very much, and that you have a very merry Chrismas!" Haruhi looked at the rose.

"Why do you have a rose in December, senpai…did you pick it from Kyouya-senpai's father's garden? I don't think that was very wise…" she said, meaning no malice of course. As Tamaki sank into the corner crying ("Mommy! Haruhi's accusing me of stealing!") the twins strode over to Haruhi and the dropped rose.

"You should be glad its just a rose," said Hikaru, tucking it behind her ear with a little more caressing of her hair than was actually needed.

"What are you talking about?" asked Haruhi, who was now munching on another cookie.

"Well it's just that…" sighed Kaoru, leaning on Hikaru's chest.

"We wouldn't put it past our lord to try mistletoe tomorrow night," they chorused mischievously. Tomorrow night was Christmas Eve.

"Mis-tle-toe?" asked Haruhi, her eyes widening. "Why would he want to use mistletoe on me?"

Hikaru and Kaoru sighed deeply and walked away.

"Sometimes, even though she's so cute--"

"—she can be so ignorant--"

"—that it gets BORING!"

Haruhi shrugged, and was promptly attacked by Hunny.

"Haru-chan, Haru-chan! Bake cookies with me! Takashi's gonna, right, Takashi? And Kyou-chan too?" Hunny's eyes were as wide as the cookies he loved so much that Haruhi couldn't bear to say no. She laughed.

"Sure, why not! You coming, Mori?" she asked of the stoic figure piggybacking Hunny.

"Yeah."

"And you, Kyouya-senpai?" They walked towards the kitchen.

"You guys go ahead…I'm a bit busy here. Besides, baking isn't my thing." Kyouya was still comforting a distraught Tamaki.

"Okay then," and the trio made there way into the cathedral-like kitchen, Haruhi almost fainting with awe.

"Mistletoe…" Tamaki mumbled. "Now there's an idea…it's a tradition, right? No harm in it?" Kyouya wasn't sure he liked where this was going, but he himself had nothing to lose.

"Depends on what you mean by harm…" he responded through his glasses.

"Then Christmas Eve tomorrow will be very interesting," chuckled a no longer weeping Tamaki. Yes, Kyouya thought. Very interesting indeed…


	2. Giftwrapping

Haruhi awoke the next morning wondering where she was. She was half buried in piles and piles of blankets in a cavernous room with its own fireplace. Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows lay thick white mountains of freshly fallen snow. At first she thought she must still be dreaming, she could never remember being this comfortable! Then she remembered she was in Kyouya's cabin for the holidays. She gave a little smile and rolled over. Just as she was falling back asleep…

"HARUHI! HARUHI! IT'S TIME TO WRAP PRESENTS, HARUHI!" chorused two extraordinarily perky voices that Haruhi attempted to ignore.

"SHH QUIET YOU FOOLS!! What if Haruhi couldn't afford to bring wrapping paper?! You are going to embarrass her!" An all-too-familiar voice was whispering so loudly at the twins it really should be called shrieking.

"I think, my lord, that we will embarrass her enough by being in her room while she's still asleep and in her nightie…" Haruhi personally agreed with Kyouya, but didn't want to move from under her cocoon of warmth, much less voice her opinion on the matter. However, Hunny was now jumping on her giant-sized bed, while the twins we're falling over each other very loudly ("Christmas is such a magical time of year, Hikaru!" "I'm glad you're of that opinion, Kaoru, since last night you were telling me how much nicer it would be to spend the holidays just the two of us…" "Hikaru!"), and Haruhi forsook further sleep as a lost cause. She pushed off the blankets and stretched.

"Now can we wrap presents, Kyou-chan?" Hunny tugged on Kyouya's pajama top. Kyouya pushed up his glasses with two fingers.

"Right after breakfast, Hunny, and after everyone gets dressed." For indeed, Haruhi wasn't the only one still in nightclothes; it seemed that Hikaru and Kaoru had been banging on everyone's door and bringing them from room to room without bothering with clothes.

"Yes and by the way milord--" put in Hikaru with barely contained laughter.

"NICE PAJAMAS!" Kaoru finished, as the twins dissolved into snickers. Blushing furiously at his teddy bear and rose patterned pajamas, Tamaki exclaimed "Yes! Dressed! _Stop that giggling right now, Haruhi! Daddy says it's impolite!"_

"In that case, let me just get dressed and we can go downstairs to eat," Haruhi looked around at everyone, who looked back. "GET OUT!!" They all jumped and flew from the room, Tamaki nearly in tears once more at Haruhi's "rudeness."

Fifteen minutes later Haruhi emerged into the main hall, which had been transformed overnight into even more of a winter wonderland. Tinsel was strewn from rafter to rafter. Beach ball-sized red, green, and silver baubles seemed to float just above Mori's head. The tree had even more decorations on it than before, hundreds of perfect candy canes, shimmering lights, and ornate ornaments freckled the lush green boughs. And right in the doorframe above Haruhi's head was –

"Mistletoe," whispered Tamaki in Haruhi's ear. "A Christmas tradition, my precious daughter, that I'm sure you are familiar with."

"Yes, but I have no interest in silly traditions, especially when there's breakfast to eat and presents to wrap!" Haruhi gently pushed him aside and strode towards the dining room. "And you'll get a cramp in your neck from posing under the doorframe all day, senpai! Come and have some breakfast," she called, without noticing the hurt in his eyes.

As Haruhi sat down at the table, her plate filled with eggs, sausage, toast, muffins, and every other breakfast food imaginable, Kyouya came up behind Tamaki.

"Just give it a rest. If it's meant to happen, it will happen," he said sensibly. But Tamaki wasn't interested in sense just yet.

"No…I will make Haruhi behave like the perfect daughter!" he asserted. "But first -- breakfast!" Kyouya walked a few paces behind him.

"She will never love you the way you want her to…until you admit you want her to love you that way, you fool," he muttered. Tamaki was already trying to feed Haruhi hot chocolate, and didn't hear this.

After breakfast, it was time to wrap presents. Within minutes, Kyouya's staff had cleared the kitchen table and supplied it with tape, scissors, and roll upon roll of wrapping paper (Tamaki needn't have worried), and soon they were all wrapping and joking merrily.

"Ouch!" exclaimed Kaoru, sucking his cut thumb.

"Tsk, you are so clumsy, Kaoru! Let me take you to our room and wash it…" said Hikaru, and the two left, leaning on each other lovingly.

"Takashi! I want cookies!" Hunny requested suddenly.

"Kitchen. Cookies for Mitsukuni," Mori stated, hoisting Hunny onto his shoulders. Hmm, thought Kyouya. He IS my friend…I might as well give him what he wants. It would be interesting to see how well the two of them get along alone.

Out loud, he said, "I'll be back soon, I must check on the kitchen staff about Christmas Eve dinner," and strode from the room. It was just a busily cutting Haruhi and a beetred Tamaki now…


	3. Questions, Answers, and Carelessness

"_Dashing through the snow_

_In a one horse open sleigh_

_O'er the fields we go_

_Laughing all the way…"_

Strains of old American carols mingled with the crackling of the fireplace and made their way into the dining hall where Tamaki and Haruhi sat. This created a very cheery environment, but Tamaki had never felt less in the Christmas spirit. He was trying fervently to keep his blush down and his heart from pounding in his ears. _Just focus on wrapping, _he told himself. He couldn't shake the feeling, though, that his thoughts about Haruhi were making their way onto his traitorous flushing face.

_I don't understand_, he thought furiously, _What am I feeling? I've never felt this way about anyone before, not any host club member, or my mother, or even the girls who visit the club…_ He glanced over at Haruhi, who flashed him a beaming smile and continued pasting a bow on a notebook-shaped package tagged "Kyouya." Tamaki's heart was throbbing so much he could almost feel his whole body shaking with each beat. He wasn't paying the slightest bit of attention to what he was doing; he had already sustained multiple cuts from scissor mishaps without even noticing. _No father in his right mind wants to kiss his daughter under the mistletoe, or dance with her in front of the fireplace, or run his fingers through her hair, or hold her tightly, just feeling her warm skin against his—_

"Senpai! You're bleeding!" gasped Haruhi. He looked bemusedly at his hand. It took a while for this fact to register: first he remembered he where he was, then that his hand was bleeding blotches of red all over his card to Kaoru, then that he was feeling a considerable amount of pain, then that – oh lord – Haruhi had thrown down a roll of tape and was rushing around the table to him…

Kyouya tsked from behind the kitchen door, where of course he, the twins, Hunny, and Mori were all eavesdropping.

"Are you kidding me? Was he so distracted in thoughts of Haruhi that he couldn't even cut straight? Kyouya muttered, half amused and half incredulous.

"Mmph – always the smooth one, our lord is," sniggered Hikaru. "So composed around most girls, but when it's one he truly cares about--"

"—and especially someone cute enough to not even love him back, he completely loses his cool!" Kaoru finished, chortling.

"You guys be nice to Tama-chan!" Hunny pouted at them. "He's just a little lovestruck with Haru-chan!" Mori grunted his assent, and Kyouya shushed them all. Haruhi was examining Tamaki's hand.

"Jeez, you're really sliced up here, senpai!" She had taken his bleeding hand in her fresh one and tried to stem the flow of blood with her handkerchief, to no avail. "We'd better go wash it off, c'mon." Tamaki just nodded and followed Haruhi into the hall. He didn't trust himself to open his mouth.

_Hmm, that's odd…_Haruhi mused. _Usually when you lose this much blood, you turn pale. But he's kind of…scarlet. _Indeed, Haruhi clutching his arm had made Tamaki realize that his blush was not going away any time soon. _Why has he been acting so oddly? How come he didn't notice his hand was bleeding so much? Well, no time to brood on that now…_They had reached the bathroom, and Haruhi's practicality took over her wonderings about Tamaki.

"Okay senpai, you'd better wash your hand off with ice cold water first, to clean it off and sterilize it, and then wet a paper towel and apply pressure to stop the bleeding, then rinse it and—" she stopped at Tamaki's blank look. "What's wrong?"

"Well," Tamaki said, in a soft tone that surprised Haruhi, "any time I've gotten hurt before, there's always been a team of family doctors to take care of me." He lowered his eyes, avoiding Haruhi's curious gaze. "I guess…I never really learned to take care of myself." There was a pause.

_I had no idea he was so reliant on others…I always knew he was an idiot, but I supposed it's because he never had to depend on his own wit. So then, it's not his fault…_Haruhi realized that she was beginning to understand him a little better...but it was more than that, she was feeling something she had never felt before…was it pity? Compassion? Something else…?

"Um, Haruhi?" Tamaki stuttered. "What do I--" His hand was starting to throb, and it was steadily dripping blood into the sink.

"Oh!" Haruhi exclaimed, jolted out of her reverie. "Here, let me…" She began to tend to his hand. The cold water and soap stung more than the cuts had, and Tamaki's eyes watered with pain. "This will hurt a bit, senpai, but otherwise your hand may get infected." Haruhi reached inside the medicine cabinet and pulled out a jar of iodine, daubing some on a cotton ball. When she gently wiped Tamaki's cuts, he gave a sharp gasp of agony.

"It's—it's like my hand's on fire!" he moaned. He had been trying to stay stoic in front of Haruhi, but he couldn't help it.

"Just a few more moments," Haruhi soothed. She mopped away the drops of blood that still popped up from his hand. "And maybe," she warned with a touch of sternness, "next time you won't be so careless!" She shook a finger in front of his nose severely, causing Tamaki to bite his lip through his tears.

_How is she still so cute?! This feeling just won't go away, this feeling of – _His eyes widened with realization (luckily for him, Haruhi just thought it was due to the pain). –_love? _Tamaki's heart started hammering against his Adam's apple. He looked at Haruhi: her innocent eyes, her boyish haircut, her pixielike features. He gave a huge gulp. _I can't lie to myself any longer,_ he realized. The next step was—well, he didn't know yet, and he didn't have time to think about it. She had pulled a bandage out of the cabinet and was wrapping it around his palm.

"See? All done!" she grinned at him. He couldn't bear to do anything more than smile back and mutter his thanks. But as he turned back to the dining room, he could swear he saw a blush creeping up Haruhi's cheeks at his smile…


	4. Happiness

**A/N Just want to say, the story will probably only have 1-3 more chapters after this / After all, Christmas can't last forever…Thanks for the reviews and "Favorite Stories" and stuff, it makes this feel worthwhile, and it's really good practice for me – I love to write, but rarely ever get motivated, and this definitely motivates me I'll definitely try to keep writing more, and for now, let's rejoin poor Tamaki…**

They reentered the dining room. Kyouya's maids had already cleared away the wrapping materials and replaced them with a six course lunch. Everyone else had already started eating. Kyouya noticed Tamaki seemed dumbstruck as he took his seat at the table. It was fairly easy to sense Tamaki's discomfort, and the source of it: he was trembling slightly, he kept stealing looks at Haruhi and shaking his head quickly, and he was about as red as a ripe tomato. Kyouya couldn't resist. With a push of his glasses, he asked:

"Where have you two been?"

Tamaki seemed lost in his thoughts. It took a second for him to register that he was being spoken to. When he had finally dragged his mind away from wondering what on earth to do next, he turned to Kyouya with a sort of hurt puppy expression and lifted his bandaged hand.

"I cut my hand." He looked down as his plateful of gourmet food as if he didn't know quite what to do with it. Only when Hunny poked him with a turkey leg and said "Eat, Tama-chan! It's good!" did he pick up a fork and dig in. He didn't appear to be paying much attention to the seasoned meats and vegetables.

_That's odd, _thought Kyouya, _usually Tamaki would get super defensive and eat really quickly to mask the twins' taunting laughter, then change the subject. I wonder what's subdued him? _Kyouya wanted to think about it more, but he was drawn to the lighthearted jokes of his friends and the good food, and put it out of his mind momentarily. Then he saw that Tamaki was barely eating…and his gaze kept shifting to Haruhi…and every time he did, his blush deepened…._Could it be that Tamaki is finally aware of his feelings? _ Kyouya glanced around the table and noticed that, judging by the small smirks on everyone's faces (yes even Mori's, and Mori rarely smiled) that he was not alone in understanding Tamaki's odd behavior.

Just to be sure, Kyouya caught Hikaru's eye, flashed his stare at Tamaki, then Haruhi, and looked back at Hikaru for confirmation that his suspicions were correct. Hikaru gave a tiny nod. On the pretext of removing his napkin from his embroidered shirt collar to wipe Kaoru's mouth, Hikaru put his finger to his lips for a brief second. The meaning couldn't have been clearer. _Yes, I can tell that he has finally come to his senses, we all can. But don't ruin this for him._ Kyouya nodded back and smiled to himself. As much as everyone teased Tamaki, no one was going to hurt him by revealing his feelings to Haruhi before Tamaki gathered the courage to do it himself. Kyouya laughed out loud. _We all really love him, that idiot!_

Haruhi looked up from the mashed potatoes she had been eating, unaware that she was the only person at the table oblivious to Tamaki's feelings toward her.

"What are you laughing at, Kyouya-senpai?" she asked. For one of the few times in is life, Kyouya was at a loss for words.

"Um, well--" he stammered (he couldn't even REMEMBER the last time he stammered!).

"Oh that's right, Kyouya, we forgot you've heard this one before!" Kaoru broke in.

"What?" Kyouya hadn't even been listening to the lively conversation at the table.

"The one about the ninja and the alchemist in the bar that we were telling, silly!" Hikaru reached across the table and tweaked his nose significantly.

"Oh – heh – right," laughed Kyouya. "This is a good one, Haruhi," he said, loading stuffing onto his spoon. _Saved by the twins, _he chuckled inwardly,_ who would have thought it?_

"So the ninja says, homunculus, schomunculus, I'd like to see YOU walk on water! And then the alchemist says…" Kaoru continued the joke, and though Kyouya wasn't lying, it was indeed a good one, Tamaki wasn't listening.

_I like her. I LIKE her. Well, I always knew I liked her, but I never knew I LIKED her! This is going nowhere. What do I do now? Do I tell her? Does she like me back? Will it ruin our friendship? Why is Kyouya looking at me like that?_

For Kyouya kept shooting furtive looks at Haruhi. In fact, the entire table seemed to be glancing at her. Haruhi, oblivious to everyone's thoughts, was just trying to figure out why she felt differently towards Tamaki now that she knew he never had to rely on himself. She glanced at him. He looked away. Kyouya was trying to keep from laughing out loud, and eventually couldn't contain himself any more.

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" he burst, slapping his knee.

"Kyou-chan? Are you okay?" asked Hunny worriedly.

"Hah—yes—hahahah—it's just that---hahahahahahahahaha!" Kyouya was lost in laughter again. _I wish those two would just realize each other! _

"Looks like someone got bitten by the Christmas spirit!" grinned Hikaru.

"I haven't seem Kyouya-senpai this happy since – ever!" Haruhi was a bit in awe at the breathless Kyouya. The loud laughter broke the tension, and even Tamaki shook himself and joined in.

"Well, there WAS that time when he got 2 thousand yen from a client—ouch!" Kyouya had picked up the pillow cushioning his chair and whacked Tamaki on the head with it. Tamaki, not wanting to be outdone, squirted a can of fake snow into Kyouya's eyes. The snow hit Mori too, who blinked and was immediately avenged by Hunny, who flung potatoes onto Tamaki's white blazer…

A complete foodfight ensued, and all minds were rid of any thought other than "pick up and throw at the nearest target!" Kyouya's cabin was filled with laughter, noise, and smiling friends. The fight turned into hide and go seek, which morphed into tag, and let it just be said that the gifts were left to be wrapped by the maids, who had a hell of a cleaning job to do December 26.

When finally the last person dropped on the limousine-sized couch exhausted after a tension-free dinner and one cry of "You're it!" all the thoughts of earlier that day cam rushing back. _We leave the day after tomorrow, on the 26__th_ thought Kyouya._ Is he going to make a move tomorrow, on Christmas? What will he do?_

Tamaki glanced over at Haruhi, in the little green and red dress she had been forced into by the twins._ Tomorrow's my last chance. She goes to her father's house when we get back, and I won't see her til mid-January. Plus, the mood is perfect! It'll be Christmas…the house is cozy, the fire is romantic…I never had a problem approaching a girl before. This will be easy…right?_ He bit his lip and touched his hand where Haruhi had held it. _Right?_


	5. The Dress and the Card

Haruhi yawned and rolled over. Just like the previous morning, she was buried under comforters. She didn't want to move. Then she remembered --

"It's Christmas!" The sounds of laughter and breakfast (mostly breakfast) made Haruhi fling off the blankets and rush to her dresser to pull out a pair of jeans. However, on the pouf-like chair next to the bed, someone – and due to the card that said "Merry Christmas! Love, Hikaru and Kaoru", Haruhi guessed who it was – had placed a dress. This was nothing new, they gave her clothes from their mother's department all the time, trying to make her more "feminine." Haruhi didn't really care for pretty dresses; she rarely wore them. But this dress…was something no girl could turn down. Actually, even Tamaki probably couldn't have resisted pulling it on. It was the purest of silver, and, well, _shiny_. Not in a tacky way, no, more like…it was resplendent. It reminded Haruhi of the pure fresh-fallen snow outside. She couldn't help it. She picked up the dress.

"Oh!" she gasped. It was softer then silk, and it felt more like liquid than fabric. Haruhi slipped into the dress almost effortlessly. Gazing in the floor length mirror by her bed, she felt like she looked just like –

"An angel," breathed a voice just outside her room. Haruhi jumped.

"SENPAI!" Tamaki opened the door fully, slightly embarrassed. "Were you watching me get dressed?!"

"No! Nothing like that! I was just passing by on my way to the bathroom, and then I noticed your door was open a bit, and I caught a glimpse of you…in that dress…" In truth, he had been pacing outside Haruhi's room for 15 minutes, trying to figure out what to say to her. The blush faded from his face and was replaced by a soft smile as he took in Haruhi's angelic appearance. "You really do look beautiful in that."

For some reason, Haruhi could feel her pulse quicken. She looked deep into his eyes, and saw no nervousness, no lies, not even the gleam he got when flattering a girl. Something was different in those last seven words. It wasn't a sugary compliment like the ones he showered over his beloved customers. It wasn't a tense, blushing admittance like she might have expected after his odd behavior the day before. It was…sincere. It was clear that he meant every word, and the meaning behind them was clear as well – the last two words might as well have been forgotten.

"Thanks, senpai," she said quietly. "It was a gift from the twins…" Tamaki started at the word gift.

"Gifts! Ohmygosh there are gifts to unwrap! Haruhi – Merry Christmas!" He had reverted almost completely to his old self again, but for some reason, Haruhi didn't find it annoying now. Instead she laughed and slid her hand into his.

"Merry Christmas, senpai," she smiled up at him. "Should we join the others?"

"Why yes we sh—no wait! There's something we have to do first!" Tamaki exclaimed.

"W-what?" Haruhi asked. _And why did my heart skip a beat with that…_

"Your outfit is not complete!" He gestured towards the chair where she had found the dress. Haruhi noticed that a silver necklace with a small diamond and earrings to match remained on the chair. "Here, let me…" Tamaki's voice was oddly reminiscent of Haruhi's just the day before. He gently pushed the hair off her neck and fastened the jewelry.

"Wow…" Tamaki and Haruhi simultaneously sighed at her reflection.

"Hikaru and Kaoru really went out of their way for this gift….Wow….I am really going to have to thank them." Haruhi felt a bit bad that she had only bought sweaters for each of the twins, as well as cupcakes.

"We'd better go downstairs, so you can thank them," Tamaki said. _And so they don't make any pervert jokes about me being in the bathroom for so long…ugh, that's the last thing I need today._

The two of them made their way down the spiral staircase into the main room, where all thoughts of breakfast were pushed out of everyone's mind by the much more appealing thought of presents.

"Back so soon, milo—Haruhi!" Hikaru cut his tease short when he saw her floating down the staircase. His eyes widened.

"Mom was right, silver DOES bring out the eyes of a brunette," Kaoru said wonderingly from right below Hikaru's ear.

"Kirei!!! Kirei desu, Haru-chan!! You're so pretty!" Hunny grinned happily in his Santa hat. "Merry Christmas!"

"Haruhi." All eyes turned to Mori in surprise (except for Tamaki's…they still were staring at Haruhi). "You look beautiful."

"Haha, thanks!" Haruhi turned to the twins. "And wow, Kaoru, Hikaru…how can I ever repay you for this? Thank you so much!"

"No need to repay, just wear more of the clothes we pick for you!" they chorused laughingly.

Kyouya had said nothing. _C'mon Tamaki…gather your courage…take her to the bay window or something and tell her how you feel…_The next words out of Tamaki's mouth, however, were:

"Okay, we're all here – it's time to unwrap presents!" This statement was met by cheers all around, and soon paper began to fly in every direction. Kyouya shrugged and joined in with a quiet laugh.

"Oooh Takashi! A hat for Beary and a new kendo uniform!"

"Wow, Haruhi, thanks, these cupcakes are delicious! Here, Kaoru, have a bite…no silly, that's my finger! Do you WANT to play the punishment game?"

"This notebook will come in quite handy for the spring accounting season." (that's his version of "thank you very much)

"Senpai." Haruhi was talking to Tamaki, but her eyes remained on his gift. Well, not so much the sapphire set of jewelry and the cookbook that would certainly come in handy. No, Haruhi was certainly very grateful for those, they were wonderful gifts. But what she was staring at was his card.

Tamaki had written it the night before, after their wrapping incident. It took him more than an hour to write, and he was very worried about how she would take it. He looked up from the rose enamored mirror given to him by the twins and could immediately tell she had read the card – and that he had had no reason to worry. Haruhi waded through the wrapping paper that had been flung on the hardwood floor until she stood in front of him. She was positively radiant in the dress that seemed to have become a part of her. He was as handsome as ever, his soft blue eyes smiling, his impeccably beautiful face tinged by a small blush and framed by his silky golden hair.

"I…" She didn't know what to say. "You…I never…."

"Master Kyouya, if you and your friends would return to the dining hall to partake in the continuation of breakfast…?" The head chef poked his head in at EXACTLY the wrong moment.

"We'll be right in!" Kyouya called back. "C'mon you guys, we better finish eating," he grinned, inwardly cursing the destruction of what should have been a perfect moment. They all filed into the dining hall, Tamaki and Haruhi both a fairly disgruntled at the interruption. Haruhi was still in awe from his card…

_Dear Haruhi,_

_Merry Christmas! I hope that you enjoy your holidays to the fullest. I know that you deserve to enjoy yourself, Haruhi. You are a hard worker with a goal, and I know the Host Club has hindered you a bit where that is concerned. One part of me apologizes for taking up so much of your time. But the other, selfish, part of me finds it easy to ignore that knowledge that you have to work harder now that you are part of the Host Club, just because it means you got to know us. I think you've changed us, Haruhi, all of us. You've opened our hearts and minds to you, to each other, to ourselves. And for that, I want to thank you. Without you, I would never have known that there are things more important than looks – and that the best things in life aren't things. Without you, I wouldn't know what it's like to actually care about someone. You are unlike anyone I have ever met. Smart, cute, and oh so sensible. Being with you isn't like being around other girls. You're different, _I'm _different when I'm around you. I want to give you more than just roses and smiles and pretty words. It's funny, I've written about 4 drafts of your Christmas card so far, and thrown them all out, I don't know if I'll even give this one to you. All the other cards were either too sappy or too meaningless. I don't want to give you something meaningless. You mean something to me. I feel like I can talk to you. Haruhi…oh, I don't know what more to say. I hope you like your gifts, and I hope you don't get scared of me because of this card. I just know that I had to say what I felt before I lost the confidence. I should have told you all this a long time ago. Merry Christmas._

_Love,_

_Tamaki_

**A/N I seriously want Haruhi's dress right now xD Oh yeah….and I don't own Ouran: the anime, the manga, the characters, etc. But everyone knows that. Hah. Next chapter will probably be the last…Tamaki's card was difficult to write xx if it seems OOC I suppose it's because I was aiming for what he actually thinks rather than how he talks…I think he's actually quite sentimental on the inside ******


	6. Those Three Words

**A/N Last chapter! It's a bit shorter than the recent ones, but oh well. By the way, the last thought (the one in italics at the end) – you decide whose thought it is xD Thanks for the support -- let me know what you thought of this story, please, and enjoy!**

"Haru-chan, Haru-chan, the pumpkin pie is yummy! Have some, have some!"

"Mitsukuni. That's enough sugar for you."

"But…but….Takaaaaaaashiiii!"

They had just finished Christmas dinner, a feast fit for at least 20 people, and were having dessert. They had spent the afternoon having a snowball fight of epic proportions, followed by lots of cozy hot showers. Before they sat down to eat, everyone had called their families to wish them Merry Christmas. So basically, Haruhi and Tamaki hadn't had a chance to talk yet. Dinner was warm and friendly, the entire cabin filled with holiday spirit. But every so often, Tamaki noticed that Haruhi kept giving him quick looks of – what was it? Admiration? There was certainly a hint of shyness in her brown eyes, but they were overpowered by something else. Though he couldn't quite place the emotion, he could understand it's general meaning through the gentle smile that danced on her lips.

He didn't want to say anything with everyone at the table, besides, he still didn't know what to say. The card seemed to cover everything except those three stupid words he just couldn't bring himself to write. His hand had been shaking furiously even when he penned "Love" at the end, and that was just a formality. How could he say it out loud, even though the words were exploding at her from inside his head? So for now, he just joked and laughed along with everyone else. _Coward,_ he scolded himself.

"Whoa, look at the time, it's almost midnight! No wonder Hunny's falling asleep!" Kyouya sprang up from the couch where they had been talking for hours.. "The limo comes to pick us up at noon tomorrow, and we're going to have to pack. We'd better turn in for the night." _Dammit. Has he missed his chance?_ Kyouya had delayed pointing out the time for quite a while, hoping Tamaki would ask to speak to Haruhi alone. However, they really needed their sleep, and he couldn't avoid it any longer. Soon the cabin was filled with tired bodies dragging themselves to their respective rooms to the tune of sleepy good night's and merry Christmas again's.

Within minutes, the length of the day had gotten to everyone. Hikaru and Kaoru's limbs were entwined in a slumbering mass, Hunny curled next to Mori in his bunny footsie pajamas, and even Kyouya had drifted off the second his coal-colored tresses grazed the satin pillow. Well, almost everyone.

Haruhi couldn't sleep. She lay in bed, almost swallowed by the heaps of blanket, clutching Tamaki's card. She read it so many times in disbelief that she had almost memorized it. How on earth was she supposed to react to this? Haruhi heaved a sigh and rolled over, trying to sleep. She had just closed her eyes when – she heard it. The sound was so tender, so quiet, that it only barely floated up the stairs to her bedroom. It was a steady and soft melody. Sad, almost mournful, which was what made it somehow so magnificently beautiful. _Bittersweet…_ the word wafted through Haruhi's consciousness like a melting dream. It was the most peaceful music she had ever heard. Tears welled in the corners of her eyes, yet she could feel her mouth twisting uncontrollably into a small smile. It was the sound of a piano. But not just any sound. This was…haunting, spell-binding, hypnotic…

She pushed the covers off slowly, and walked towards the door, opening it without even thinking. In a trance-like state, Haruhi floated down the staircase. When she reached the bottom, the thought occurred to her that she had no idea where she was going. She needn't worry, though, her feet were one step ahead of her. They automatically were drawn to the enchanting, otherworldly song. The strains of music grew stronger as Haruhi's feet – or at this point, she felt, her heart – led her down a passageway she hadn't yet ventured. At the end of the corridor, she saw a large mahogany door. She was nearly drunk on the intoxicating notes…there, she had turned the handle and pushed open the door.

And there he was. He hadn't changed out of his blue dinner tuxedo. His eyes were pressed shut. He hadn't heard the door open. All his emotions poured into his fingertips as they flew across the keys. Haruhi wanted to say something; she knew she would have to at some point after all, but she just couldn't bring herself to interrupt him. She just stood, mesmerized. No longer was it just the music that kept her hypnotized, but…the sheer intensity that seemed to radiate from Tamaki seemed to create a force field that no mortal could ever resist. His brows furrowed in concentration, his hair glowing in the moonlight from the window as he moved his head in time with the music, his arm muscles flexing as they worked furiously yet effortlessly…she couldn't take her eyes off him. Nor could she keep her mouth closed any longer.

"Ooh…" she let out a small gasp. Tamaki's eyes fluttered open. He caught sight of her.

"Oh! Haruhi!" he exclaimed, standing. "I didn't hear you come in!"

"That was…" Haruhi was speechless. "I never knew you…"

"Oh…Did you get my card? I hope it didn't scare you, I mean, I hope I didn't scare you, I- I-" He had no idea what to do. She was walking closer with an odd look in her eye, the same one she had when she was looking at him at dinner earlier. What was she even doing here? "Did my playing wake you? I'm so sorry, so sorry, I didn't mean to, I don't--"

The next thing he knew was her hand in his hair and her lips on his. His eyes widened in shock for a moment, and then he pulled back and looked at her. He smiled at her wide shining eyes, that genuine smile again, and kissed her back. Her small arms wrapped around his neck and pulled him closer. He encircled her slender waist and kissed her with new passion…he was happier than he could ever remember. He would have laughed out loud if his mouth wasn't so delightfully occupied. Kyouya, however, who had woken up as Haruhi passed and followed her, did indeed laugh out loud from just outside the door. Tamaki and Haruhi were lost in their own world, and didn't hear him…

"Merry Christmas, senpai," she whispered into his ear.

"Haruhi."

"Yes?"

"I love you."

She beamed at him.

"I love you too."

_I finally said it!_

And they kissed again…


End file.
